Container for coins



Mar. 27, 1923. 1,449,410

E. E. IHRIG ET AL CONTAINER FOR COINS Filed Jan. 10, 1922 F'IEJI.

Patented air, 27, I923.

'r r a i c EUGENE E. IHRIG AND WILLIAM H. SCHNEIDER, 0F PITTSBURGH,PENNSYLVANIA,

ASSIGNORS TO UNIT COIN DIET/ICE MANUFACTURING CORPORATION, OF PITTS-BURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

CONTAINER FOR COINS.

Application filed January 10, 1922. 'Serial No. 528,253.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EUGENE E. IHRIG and IVILLIAM H. SCHNEIDER, residingat Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania,citizens of the United States, have invented or discovered certain newand useful Improvements in Containers for (Joins, of which improvementsthe following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in containers for coins. Itconsists in a receptacle into which coins of any given denominationtaken from a miscellaneous collection may be gathered, and in whichwithout the necessity of actual counting the aggregate value may beautmnatically determined,

The receptacle is not bulky and affords a convenient holder for carryingcoins. The

invention relates itself particularly to the disposal of small change intills of retail store-keepers and of amusement places, change in churchcollections, etc. At the end of a days business it is a burdensome taskto sort and count and perhaps form packages duly labeled of the coinsresulting from the days sales. In larger establishments there issometimes found complicated and expensive machinery for doing this Work,but in smaller establishments-there is a. need, to the meeting of whichour invention is addressed.

The accompanying drawings show a coin container embodying our invention.Fig. I is a view of it in side elevation; Fig. II a View in verticalsection, Fig. III is a rear elevation; Fig. IV is a top plan view whenthe container is closed; Fig. V is a top plan view of it when open; andFig. VI is a view in cross section, on the line VIVI, Fig. I.

The container consists essentially of a body and a guard member. Thesereally are in substance and effect two partial cylinders 1 and 2 pivotedtogether to rotate relatively on their common axis. The body member 1 ismanifestly a part cylinder, as will clearly be perceived on comparingFigs. I and VI; guard member 2 is nothing more than a bar, butconsidering its orbit of rotation (indicated in dotted lines, Fig. VI)it is after all a part cylinder. These two 0 linder parts when swung toopen position V) still do not in their aggregate peripheral extentexceed a half cylinder. In-

deed, in this case they make up something than a half cylinder. It isnot prohibitive of the enjoyment of our invention that these partsshould exceed in the aggregate halfcylinder, but ordinarily they willtogether approximate that extent.

Means are provided for locking the two parts 1 and 2 against relativeturning when the guard member 2 is in coin retaining positi0n,'that isto say when the container is closedthe position of Fig. IV. And as thereclearly shown, the bar then stands diametrically opposed, center lineopposite center line, to body member 1. These looking means arepreferably automatic, so that tl e closed container locks itself andstays locked until the guard bar is released to swing to open position.Such a lock may consist of a tongue 3 of spring steel extending fromguard member 2 across one head ofv body member 1, and of a properly sunkgroove -il in the head of the body member, into which tongue 3 springs.The parts may be so proportioned, as by a bevel a on the rim of bodymember 1, that the tip of the tongue 3 will when in locked positionprotrude sufliciently to be engaged by a finger nail and lifted,preparatory to swinging the guard member to open position.

Along guard rail 2 slides a follower block 5 adapted to overlie a stackof coins C arranged within the carrier and to secure them againstdisplacement. This follower block slides freely on the rail in onedirection (downward, Fig. II) but sliding in op-- posite direction isresisted by a small springbacked dog 6, provided with a shoulder 7. Thespring backing in this case consists in an attenuated rearward extensionof the body of the member 6 itself. This extension being of elasticmetal, affords the spring backing alluded to. The user catching shoulder7 under a finger nail may raise dog 6, and when the dog is raised thefol lower block 5 will slide freely, up as well as down.

Externally one of the members 1 and 2, conveniently the body member, maybe graduated, as shown in Figs. I and III, to afford indication of theamount contained in the carrier.

We find that there is no variation in the thickness of coins consequentupon use such Cir as to disturb or render inaccurate such a ready meansof determining aggregate value, where the total number ofcoins piledtogether does not exceed fifty say.

The mode of use, and the advantages of use are apparent. The usersupplied with carriers of various sizes for various denominations of thecoins in use, and with a sufficient number of carriers of each size,takes from a miscellaneous collection of change all the cents,ornickels, or dimes, and, without counting drops them easily in piles inthe opened containers. Then a container is filled it may be closed andanother empty one of the same size taken up. Each container holds whenfull a certain number of the coins of the size for which it is made, andof course when full contains money to a known value. The user emptyinghis till packs his containers, and when he is done, he can almost at aglance perceive the exact amount of money he has, and, in addition tothat, he has the coins sorted and packed in convenient form forhandling, and the value of each package is immediately apparent. I

WVe are content here to show the essential element in which ourinvention is found. Manifestly such an element or a plurality ofsuchelements may, it for any reason the doing so is thought desirable, bebuilt into a larger or more complicated structure.

In the foregoing description we have tacitly assumed that there will bea con tainer of distinctive size for coins of each denomination, and ofcourse this will be the preferred state of things. However it is quitepossible Within limits, to use a relatively largecontainer for arelatively small coin-for instance, a container primarily intended forcents may be used to receive dimes. In Figure III we show the containergraduated by two scales one indicating cents, the other indicatingdimes. This small modification of the practice of the invention will beunderstood without further detailed explanation.

We claim as our invention:

1. A coin container consisting of two coin-retainingmembers, one beingan incomplete cylinder and the other a guard rail rotatable on thecylindrical axis over the open side of the incomplete cylinder, and afolloweradapted to slide upon one of said members and engage the top ofa stack of coins within.

2. A coin container including two cylinder parts relatively rotatable ontheir common axis and in their combined peripheral extent not exceedinga halt cylinder, and manually releasable means for positively securingthe parts in opposite relative positions.

3. A coin container consisting of an incomplete cylinder and a guardrail rotatable on the cylindrical axis over the open side of theincomplete cylinder and means for securing the rail in intermediateposition in the range of rotation including a spring tongue fitting intoa recess and adapted to be manually lifted therefrom in effectingrelease.

4. A coin container consisting of an incomplete cylinder, a guard railrotatable on the cylindrical axis over the open side of the incompletecylinder, and a stop adapted to slide upon said guard rail.

5. A coin container consisting of an incomplete cylinder, a guard railrotatable on the cylindrical axis over the open side of the incompletecylinder, a stop adapted to slide upon said guard rail, and aretractable spring impelled check borne by said stop and normallyengaging saidrail and adapted to secure the stop against sliding in onedirection.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands.

EUGENE E. IHRIG. WILLIAM H. SCHNEIDER.

Witnesses:

FnANoIs J. TOMASSON. HARRY E. VANDERSYDE.

